tires and wheels Wheel valve stem questions

[Britonbees]

Ok i have a set of E30 BBS RZ 14" that i have redone , the question i have is i would prefer not to put in snap in Valve stems . what are the alternatives ? Hole opening is 11mm , lip is 14mm ....where do you get your valve stems and any alternative ones folks use ? cheers...... picture attached is this the correct size format ? 

[Britonbees]

here are my finished rims 

[DEZIMADE]

Love these. I need those center caps ! Or at the very least ones that fit I have none on there now. Can you point me in s direction. I need 4 of course.

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[xferboy]

Nice job on the rims!

 

Just a little info from my past life in tires (semi's, light trucks and cars):

 

Rubber stems, although not as pretty, if you happen to hit something with them while driving (please don't), will survive better (bend vs break)

 

steel stems: if you can get one to fit (the 14mm is tight), get the ones with the nut on the outside.  Allows you to tighten them if they start leaking with out pulling the tire....  once again, not as pretty...

 

Change the rubbers with each tire change (cheap insurance)

 

Also, steel caps add function as well as pretty:  the rubber provides a seal that may help if the valve fails.   For those that do get things hot while driving, go with steel caps as well (or none).  City buses would drag the brakes enough to heat things up, melt plastic caps, which would go into the valve and cause a leak....

 

 

 

[Mike Self]

One more suggestion about using metal valve stems vs rubber on those alloy wheels:  put a light coat of anti-seize paste on the portion of the stem that contacts the hole in the wheel rim.  Wouldn't hurt to use a little on the threaded section where the attaching nuts go.  

 

When I acquired a set of early '02 factory alloys with their original metal valve stems, I had to soak the stems in penetrating oil and use a lead mallet to break 'em loose, then spend some few minutes with a stainless steel bottle brush to clean out the corrosion from the opening in the wheel.  

 

mike